Dragon Ball Z, Akira Toriyama’s crowning achievement in the shonen genre, is still celebrated today. Dragon Ball has been a staple of the industry for more than three decades, and there’s still no end in sight for the powerful adversaries that Goku encounters.
Thrilling feats of strength punctuate Dragon Ball Z’s most exciting moments, and audiences cherish the debut of a new transformation or powerful energy attack. At the same, some believe that Dragon Ball Z has come to lean too hard on the bewildering power of ki. It’s interesting to consider how some of Dragon Ball Z’s biggest battles might have played out without the use of ki.
10 Piccolo And Goku Need Ki To Finally Take Out Raditz
Dragon Ball Z wastes no time when it comes to its larger conflicts. The period of peace that kicks off the anime is quickly interrupted by Raditz’s surprise attack. Raditz is so powerful that he forces Goku and Piccolo to work together for the first time, but they’re still overwhelmed. Goku needs to sacrifice himself so that Piccolo can finish off both the Saiyans with his Special Beam Cannon. Raditz doesn’t use a ton of ki moves, but without the Special Beam Cannon, the heroes would have been helpless against him.
9 Yakon’s Defeat Revolves Around Ki Exploitation
Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan are forced to go up against Babidi’s lower lackeys as they work their way through the Majin menace’s spaceship. Goku’s target is Yakon, a powerful alien able to consume energy for his own strength. Goku uses this opportunity to show that he’s properly mastered the ways of a Super Saiyan 2 by delivering so much ki to Yakon that he explodes. A battle without ki, where the two purely resort to combat, would require drastically different strategies from both fighters.
8 Captain Ginyu And Goku Walk A Mile In Each Other’s Shoes
The members of the Ginyu Force are some of Dragon Ball’s more colorful antagonists, both figuratively and literally. During their time on Planet Namek, Gohan, Vegeta, and Krillin hold their own against the group until Goku shows up to take on Captain Ginyu himself.
Ginyu is a fascinating threat because his greatest skill is a body swap procedure he successfully pulls off against Goku. This leads to some compelling tension between the two of them, but it could feel even more personal and aggressive if they were forced to use only their brute strength.
7 Krillin Is Robbed Of A Proper Fight Against Dabura Because Of His Demonic Ki Abilities
Dragon Ball Z is full of intimidating enemies, but Dabura’s resemblance to Satan makes him one of the most threatening. As ruler of the Demon Realm, Dabura has some extremely unique powers, including spit that petrifies whoever it touches. Krillin is one of the unfortunate victims of Dabura’s spit attack. It’s a shocking moment in the series, but an actual fight between Krillin and Dabura would be more rewarding and a great showcase of how their physical strengths compare.
6 Dragon Ball Z’s First Assault Against Vegeta Is Deeply Reliant On Ki Attacks
Dragon Ball Z goes on for nearly 300 episodes, but the showdown between Goku and Vegeta during the anime’s introductory Saiyan Saga remains its highest point. Vegeta’s eventual defeat requires calculated teamwork from Goku, Gohan, Krillin, and even Yajirobe. However, ki is crucial to this fight. Goku makes heavy use of his new Kaio-Ken and Spirit Bomb techniques, and Vegeta only becomes a Great Ape through the artificial moon that he creates with ki. Removing all of these touches would completely change the fight’s direction.
5 Future Trunks’ Takedown Of The Androids Could Last Longer
It can be difficult to introduce new characters late into a series’ run, but Future Trunks quickly became one of Dragon Ball Z’s most popular fighters. His storyline features an exceptional example of cathartic closure.
Future Trunks isn’t strong enough to defeat Androids 17 and 18 when he first travels back in time, but he eventually returns and eliminates the them with ease. Future Trunks blasts the Androids with ki, completely obliterating them. He’s probably capable of defeating them with just his swords, but it’d be a more complex fight.
4 Gohan And Super Buu Have Achieved Unprecedented Power
Goku ultimately gets to defeat Buu with his signature Spirit Bomb technique, but there’s a lengthy period of time where it seems like Gohan will follow in his father’s footsteps and eliminate this ancient evil. Lots of Dragon Ball Z’s runtime is devoted to Gohan’s growth as a fighter and to demonstrating how strong he has become. A fight between Super Buu and Gohan that relied on strength alone would be a satisfying way to explore his character arc.
3 Golden Frieza’s Fight With Goku Carries Decades Of History
Dragon Ball Z is always looking ahead to the next big threat. But there are certain enemies, like Frieza, who get numerous opportunities to sow chaos. His grand return to the series is emphasized by a fancy new transformation into Golden Frieza, allowing him to rival the strength of Super Saiyan Blue. Frieza, Goku, and Vegeta have a ton of history simmering under the surface throughout this fight. An even more powerful way to release all of this aggression would be through pure strength, with zero ki involvement.
2 Android 19 Can Barely Register His Defeat Against Vegeta
The introduction of Dr. Gero’s Androids marks a very exciting period in Dragon Ball Z. Not only does it bring forward a new tier of powerful villains, the heroes get to show off how much they’ve grown. Vegeta publically flaunts his new Super Saiyan form, and he couldn’t be cockier about his new strength. He gleefully uses Android 19 as his guinea pig, soundly defeating him. A more conventional battle between the two would still end in Vegeta’s favor, but it’d be interesting to watch them engage in a more significant fight.
1 The Thrilling Showdown Between Goku And Majin Vegeta Could Get Even More Personal
Dragon Ball Z is filled with rich relationships and rivalries, but the complex respect that exists between Goku and Vegeta is by far the series’ deepest well to draw from. Dragon Ball Z’s Buu Saga attempted to reignite the fiery rage of the two Saiyans by having Vegeta succumb to a malevolent power boost and become Majin Vegeta. The fight between Majin Vegeta and Goku is incredibly satisfying, but it could veer into even more visceral territory if both fighters stripped away the pomp and circumstance and focused on the fundamentals.
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